“We Are Mephibosheth”

   

    We are all Mephibosheth.

     “And David said, Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake? And there was of the house of Saul a servant whose name was Ziba. And when they had called him unto David, the king said unto him, Art thou Ziba? And he said, Thy servant is he. And the king said, Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God unto him? And Ziba said unto the king, Jonathan hath yet a son, which is lame on his feet. And the king said unto him, Where is he? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar. Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was come unto David, he fell on his face, and did reverence. And David said, Mephibosheth. And he answered, Behold thy servant!
 And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. And he bowed himself, and said, What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?
Then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him, I have given unto thy master's son all that pertained to Saul and to all his house.  Thou therefore, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him, and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread alway at my table” (II Samuel 9:1-10).

    Because of the length of this blessed passage, I will keep my comments brief.  Mephibosheth had no inherent claim on King David’s beneficence.  He was blessed for his father Jonathan’s sake, because Jonathan had been such a dear friend of David during his earthly lifetime.  Lame, and apparently cursed of God, Mephibosheth found the grace that transformed a “dead dog” into an adopted family member at the king’s table.

     You see the analogy.  We are “accepted in the Beloved.”  God blesses us “with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ.”  He grants unto us “the unsearchable riches of Christ” because our blessed Lord “became poor” for us.  We are heirs of God because we are related to “the Heir of all things.”  The wondrous chronicle of grace could go on and on.  We are Mephibosheth.  The Lord Jesus is our Jonathan.  God the Father is the David who brought the lame man unto his table for a lifetime because he was related to Jonathan. 

     A final thought, in the form of a question: can you imagine how much Mephibosheth loved both Jonathan and David?  Yes, you can.  Yes, we can.  Because we are Mephibosheth.

“The grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

(I Timothy 1:14-15)